Through the first half of the CFL regular season, the Ottawa Redblacks were a model of inconsistency.

There was plenty of good, but too much bad … and when the bad happened, it was crippling. The past two weeks have been better, though far from perfect.

The offence is always an easy target for nitpickers. The playcalling, the quarterback decisions, it’s all been put under the magnifying glass in the favourite pastime of critics: Armchair Quarterbacking 101. While the results have been pretty good, Redblacks quarterback Trevor Harris says he has learned plenty during the 2017 season, much of it off the field.

“It’s been trial under fire,” said Harris Wednesday, just before the team hopped on a bus and travelled to Montreal where they will play the Alouettes on Thursday night. “This is the first year I’ve been actually the guy. People look at you differently. I’m always critiquing myself, there are always ways to get better. But in terms of getting better, it’s more off-the-field stuff. On the field, I am who I am at this point.”

Offensive co-ordinator Jaime Elizondo likes the tools in his toolbox. He likes the players he has to work with. While it’s evolving, it will get better, he said.

“We’re finding our identity,” said Elizondo. “We’re playing better, we’re moving around better, we’re causing confusion better. When we first got a couple of the injuries, we were moving guys around, guys played different spots — we were trying to formation things, so you put the best player in the best situation. That’s going to cause you to play a little slower. That’s what happened the first few games with Diontae (Spencer) being a bit banged up, losing Juron (Criner to injury), putting in different guys. We’re a work in progress and hopefully trending upward.

“How do you get better? It’s a matter of habit building so things become natural — do the same thing over and over so in the heat of your moment your instincts can take over. There’s so much room for improvement in our offence. There’s a million ways you get better, that’s a daily process whether you’re a football coach or a person.”

In Saturday’s 31-24 win over B.C., Harris threw a couple of interceptions where maybe he should have looked for another option instead of tossing the ball into coverage.

The second one, which led to a touchdown that cut the Redblacks’ lead to seven, was an ill-advised pass that Ronnie Yell picked off at the Ottawa 37 and took to the Ottawa three-yard line, where Harris forced him out of bounds.

Explained Elizondo: “Trevor sees it well. We called that play in the huddle. We said they were going to be in a coverage called double cut. He told Jake (Harty), ‘Hey, listen, if the corner squats, I’m going to take the hole shot to you.’ ”

As it turned out, Yell “collisioned” both Harty and Greg Ellingson to get a clear path to the ball.

“Trevor just has to trust his instincts and we have to get a cleaner release off that, too,” said Elizondo.

Getting Harris and the other 11 guys on the field in sync is the goal.

“It’s a process knowing what Trevor is comfortable with, what our receivers can do, what our line can protect, how we can run the ball better,” said Elizondo. “Of course you can evolve. If you don’t, the game leaves you behind. I feel pretty good about the direction we’re heading. We also played a heckuva lot of good defensive fronts over the first five or six games.”

There’s plenty on the line in Thursday’s game. A win would give the Redblacks some breathing room in the hunt for a playoff spot. Not only would they move three points ahead of the Als, they’d also take over top spot in the East, a point ahead of Toronto, which will have a game in hand.

MADU STAYS IN: William Powell will stay on the one-game injured list, while Mossis Madu Jr. will again start at running back for the Redblacks.

Madu rushed for 42 yards and had another 40 yards on catches versus the Lions. He also scored two touchdowns. In the four games he has started, Madu has averaged 48 rushing yards. He leads the CFL with three two-point converts.

“They’re similar guys,” said Redblacks coach Rick Campbell, who added that Powell was “close to returning.” “We’re lucky to have two very capable guys where we don’t seem to miss a beat with whoever’s in there. Mossis made some big plays for us last game. We really feel comfortable with both those guys.”

“When I put either of those guys in, both of them are capable of doing everything we ask them to do,” said Elizondo. “The best part is they’ve had a great attitude about it.”

KUDOS FOR THORPE: Noel Thorpe has plenty of respect around the CFL. Count the Redblacks’ QB among those who knows the difference the Als’ defensive co-ordinator can make in the tone of a game.

“He does a good job of keeping you off balance, blitzing you, dropping people into coverage at opportune times,” said Harris. “That’s why he’s one of the best in the business.

“His scheme’s unique. Every defence in this league is kind of unique. Every D co-ordinator has his own touch, his own picture he paints. But it’s our job as an offence to just do what we do, not really concern ourselves with what they’re doing.”

THE END AROUND: The Philadelphia Eagles waived former Redblacks DB Mitchell White on Wednesday. You can bet he’ll exhaust all NFL opportunities before considering the CFL. And Ottawa is happy with Corey Tindal and Jonathan Rose … One of the Redblacks’ changes Thursday is that SAM linebacker Nick Taylor is out and Adrian James is in. Explained Campbell: “Nick’s not a serious injury, but he’s a little big banged up and we want to go with completely healthy bodies.” … Sherrod Baltimore keeps impressing. The Redblacks DB had a career-high seven defensive tackles against B.C. and tipped a pass that was picked off by Jonathan Newsome to clinch the win.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.